


Kissing Katie Brown

by fabrega



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: F/M, M/M, Originally Posted on LiveJournal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-01-13
Updated: 2008-01-13
Packaged: 2019-07-05 05:41:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15857367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fabrega/pseuds/fabrega
Summary: Laura Cadman has never been inside anyone's head before, but she can tell that something fishy is going on inside Rodney McKay's head.





	Kissing Katie Brown

**Author's Note:**

> Set between Duet (2x03) and Quarantine (4x13). Originally written & posted on LJ in 2008, moved to AO3 in August 2018 with minor edits for clarity.

Laura Cadman has never been inside anyone's head before, but she can tell that something fishy is going on inside Rodney McKay's head. For one thing, it feels like he's trying to _hide_ something from her. She can somehow _feel_ things slipping past her, things he is nearly voicing but censoring with an obvious paranoia. She wonders: could there maybe be some sort of classified information he's afraid she'll have access to? But that doesn't make any sense.

She notices other things as well--the way Rodney stands, for instance, the way his weight shifts awkwardly at times, the way his eyes dart one way and the other.

She gets suspicious. She watches. She listens.

*

"So we're cool?" Colonel Sheppard says to Dr. McKay.

"You're cool; I'm fine," McKay replies.

*

When Rodney wakes up in Cadman's room, he panics. Cadman explains--although she can tell he's not having any of it--and ends, as he's putting on his clothes behind a bedsheet, with one last muttered jibe: "And besides, your bed smelled funny."

(Because when she has control of his body, she has control of all of his senses, including the ones he can't help, which smell the cologne and hair gel on his pillow and feel enviably content.)

*

There's a conversation Laura keeps meaning to have with Katie and keeps putting off. She's done it a hundred times in her head, and it's always gone something like this:

_"I think your boyfriend is sleeping with his CO," Laura will begin, slightly grimacing with embarrassment even within the shelter of her own brain._

_"Dr. Weir?" Katie will say, trying to sound incredulous, and Katie will laugh, a noise that sounds more worried than amused--she knows a woman with power is incredibly hot, much moreso than a mid-level botanist could probably be._

_And Laura will wince some more inside, and say, "No, I mean Colonel Sheppard."_

_Katie will laugh, for real this time...and will stop laughing when she sees that Laura isn't kidding._

And nine times out of ten, there's an argument and it ends with some variation of Katie slapping Laura and storming off nearly in tears. She hasn't come up with a way to make it end up better, but it's something she feels like she has to do.

But she _likes_ Katie (and, possibly, against her better judgment, Rodney McKay) and doesn't want to hurt her, so she doesn't say anything. 

When she eventually does corner Katie and ask her how things with Rodney are going, she finds that she shouldn't have been too worried--apparently their time off-world is almost always scheduled opposite each other, so they're rarely on Atlantis together. Part of her sighs with relief.

*

Carson has finally released Rodney and Laura from the infirmary, and John finds him in the hallway outside the lab. They fall in step. "You doin' okay there, buddy? No trouble?" he asks.

Rodney glares at him. "There might be. Have you ever had someone else in your head? It's a little tough to tell what they're doing in there."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, she was able to _take over my body_. You saw that!"

John makes a sour face. "You don't think she knows--"

"I don't know what to think. I'm...trying not to."

"Then let's talk about something else," John says. Rodney doesn't like his tone of voice. "I hear you and Katie Brown had a pretty good date the other night."

"Well, someone is a liar." Rodney's face darkens. "She asked me out and I went. That's all there is."

"There's no need to sound defensive, Rodney. I'm happy for you."

He doesn't sound happy.

Rodney turns and faces John, his voice quiet and serious. "What was I supposed to do? She's nice, and you and me? This thing isn't even supposed to _exist_ , so it's not a very good excuse for getting out of dates. Besides, we talked about this--"

"I know." John's reply is heavy, and Rodney, who has gotten better at reading John over the past year or so, hears the apology there.

(Somehow, the team always manages to be off-world when Katie wants to go out again. Rodney knows who schedules the missions.)

*

They're browsing the Toyota lot when Jeannie brings it up again. "So, _are_ you going to marry Katie Brown?"

"I told you, I don't know!"

"Meredith Rodney McKay, you broke both my legs. I deserve to at least know your reasoning here."

"Hey, I'm buying you a Prius! And it's none of your business!"

"It is _always_ a sister's business."

"She's named a cactus after me."

Jeannie snorts. "Well, if that isn't love, I don't know what is!"

"It's not that I don't _like_ Katie, but it's...complicated."

"Everything's always complicated with you," Jeannie replies, rolling her eyes. "Ooh, look at that green one!" When they've reached the car she's spotted, Jeannie speaks again. "So what's so complicated that it keeps you from being happy, big brother?"

Rodney looks at his sister and makes up some terrible excuse about being off-world all the time. She looks like she knows he's bullshitting her. He wishes he could tell her the truth.

*

There's a strange car in her driveway when Laura gets home from work. She tenses, and then sees Dr. Rodney McKay get out of it. He follows her to the front door.

"Rodney, what are you doing here?"

"You were supposed to be home when I got here," he says, not answering. He follows her into the house and sits on the sofa. "I wanted to get angry when you answered the door."

"Do you want something to drink? Water? Tea? Orange juice?" Laura sticks her head in from the kitchen just to watch Rodney wince.

"I'm allergic to--"

"--I know, Rodney." She brings him a glass of water, which he drinks thankfully. "So why are you here?" She's got a sneaking suspicion.

"I just need to know...why did you kiss Katie Brown that first night?"

So that's what this is about. "Why not? You were nervous, she was cute, and--"

"--and you _trapped_ me!" Rodney's voice is shaking.

"I 'trapped' you?! I 'trapped' you in a good relationship with a wonderful woman, Rodney!"

"But you _knew_!"

Laura sits in the armchair opposite the sofa. "Why should that have stopped me?"

"I was getting along okay before you came along, thank you very much! And now everything's all...tangled up." Laura notices the way Rodney's fingers clutch at the sofa arm.

"How do you mean?"

"Katie named a cactus after me. My sister wants me to _propose_." He pauses when he hears Laura's breath catch. "It wasn't ever supposed to be this serious. I care about her a lot." When Laura doesn't say anything, Rodney continues, "I had a girlfriend once who named her cat after me, but it wasn't--she gave it to the shelter when she moved, she didn't _keep_ it. That's nowhere _close_ to a cactus."

"Are you going to propose?" Laura asks.

"I don't know!" Rodney snaps. "Why did you kiss her?"

*

"You're going to _what_?"

Rodney's voice is tiny. "Propose? To Katie?" he repeats hopefully.

John's gaze flickers to the ring box in Rodney's hand again. 

Rodney wants John to tell him not to go through with it, to tell him this is probably a mistake--to say something, _anything_ \--but John just looks at him and shakes his head. Rodney puts the ring box back in his pocket and starts to stomp away.

"You're not going to do it."

Rodney pauses but doesn't turn around; he just wishes he could feel as sure as John sounds.


End file.
